What Makes a Hero
by Bandicoot Sauce
Summary: Mido is so underrated. Let's give him a chance, shall we?


**What Makes a Hero**

**Bandicoot Sauce: Well, I promised and now I've delivered; one **_Zelda_** fanfic, all signed, sealed and-**

**Navi: Hey! Listen! Let's just get on with it!**

**Bandicoot Sauce: Suggestion noted.**

**(Navi is suddenly crushed under a fly swatter)**

**Happy Mask Salesman: You shouldn't have done that.**

**Bandicoot Sauce: Beat it, creepazoid! Anyway, enjoy the show, readers.**

_Look at him._

"That was amazing, Link!" Saria declared, applauding along with most of the other Kokiri while the hero drew back the elastic of his slingshot and fired again, hitting another wooden target right in the centre.

_What a show off. Those girls are swooning all over him and that stinker loves it._

Mido was sitting over by his house, moping, as usual.

_I mean, it's not even _that_ impressive. Any idiot can hit a target like that. A _moving_ target, on the other hand…_

Why don't you try, Mido?

Mido looked up from his sulk to see Fado staring kindly down at him.

_Me? Play this stupid game Link set up? For what? Well, it would be great to finally show him up and let them all see how a _real_ man does things…_

"Alright. I'm game." He declared, getting up and trudging over to where Link and the others were standing. He snatched the slingshot from Link's hand and looked at the nearest target. He snorted.

"How about a challenge? Let's see some moving targets!"

"Ooooooohhhh." the girls all crowed, excited. Link shrugged and pulled his shield off his back, holding it in front of him and moving back and forth as a target. Mido quietly snickered, deciding to have some fun with him.

"Faster!" he called sharply. Link obliged, starting to pant from the effort of running back and forth with the heavy metal shield in his hands.

"Come on, Mido, don't torment him!" Saria said, looking annoyed. "Just get it over with!" But Mido was hardly listening.

_This'll teach him for being such a big shot._

"Watch this! Right in the centre of the crest!" he declared, readying a pebble and-

_Snap._

"OW!"

He had pulled the elastic back too far and it broke, smacking him in the face right between the eyes. He stumbled backwards and fell on his butt, right in the shallows of the pond. Everyone laughed at their self-proclaimed leader.

"Shut up! SHUT UP!" he roared, trying to sound commanding, but his humiliation showed when a single tear ran down his cheek as he saw that Saria was laughing too. That was it. Mido leapt up and tackled Link to the ground, screaming, "This is all your fault! You and your stupid bag of tricks!" while he tried to hit his rival. "You set me up, you… you…!"

"I did no such thing!" Link protested angrily, fighting back. "You broke the elastic with your own clumsy hands!"

"Freak!"

"Selfish jerk!"

"Broken half-person with no fairy!"

"BED WETTER!"

The whole world seemed to stop at Link's shout. Everyone was staring at Mido, who was now sprawled on the ground, his face white.

"Yeah, that's right!" Link spat. "He wets the bed! I once saw him hiding the bedsheets!"

There was a pause, and then everyone started laughing again. Everyone except Saria, who took pity on Mido and helped him up, but before she could try to comfort him, he ran off in tears, the laughter of his clan echoing not in his ears, but his mind…

Saria found him later in the Lost Woods, sniffling sadly at his reflection in a body of water. He looked up and saw her coming, tried to run, but tripped over a Deku Stick and fell forward, adding further humiliation.

"Mido, listen. It's okay." Saria said soothingly. "No one really thinks less of you just because of… No, no, don't cry! It's alright…"

"NO!" Mido howled. "NO, IT IS NOT ALRIGHT! Ever since _he_ showed up, my life has been horrible. I said it was a bad idea to keep an outsider in our forest, but nooooo, the Great Deku Tree insisted. I'd like to know what would've happened if the Deku Tree just kicked him out as a baby!"

"Mido…" Saria gasped, shocked. "That's a horrible thing to say."

"Well, Link _is_ horrible to me! 'Oh, look, he's so brave, he's so sweet, he's so cute.' Wrong! He's not brave! I'm brave! I am a leader! He's just a big talker! He never saved Hyrule! He never went to this so-called Termina place! He's just a cowardly liar trying to win you over before I can even tell you how I fe-"

He stopped abruptly, very aware that Saria was watching him closely. "Mido, what are you trying to say?" she asked. He swallowed.

"Never mind. The point is, I'm far braver and heroic than he ever could be."

"Well, if you're sure, then why don't you prove it?"

"Huh?" Saria's words caught Mido completely off guard.

"You heard me. You're the one who sounds like the big talker here. Why not try to back up your words?"

Mido suddenly grinned. Saria hadn't seen him smile like that in ages. "Yes! YES! Saria, I could ki- Uh, I mean, I'll do it! I'll show them that I rule and-"

"Don't say it."

"-And Link drools."

**That night…**

_Oh, this is perfect._

Link snored gently from his bed while Mido struggled with something in the darkness. The Kokiri boss grinned madly as he reached up with a marker and drew a pair of dark, empty eye sockets and a mouth full of jagged teeth on the mannequin's blank face.

_When Link wakes up and sees this dummy, he'll think it's a ReDead and he'll scream and wet himself for sure! He'll tear out of here like lightning and once his screaming and crying wakes up everyone else, I'll rush in and 'slay' the source of his fear and then I'll be recognised as a brave hero. Link will finally show me some respect and Saria will tell me how amazing I am, right before she closes her eyes and starts to lean forward and then I'll do the same and we'll-_

"Huh? Mido?" Link mumbled sleepily, waking up.

"Wha…?" Mido muttered, surprised.

"Mido? Is that you? I thought I heard you muttering. You woke me up."

_I mustn't panic. It's dark. He hasn't seen me yet. Maybe I can… Oh, come on, think! Oh! I've got it!_

Mido tossed back his head and let out an inhuman scream. It was horrible. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard. It was - albeit improvised - a ReDead scream.

The response was not what Mido had expected. Or wanted.

"Mido, why are you screaming?"

To Mido, this didn't make sense. He tried another scream, starting to worry. Link spoke again, his voice filled with concern.

"Mido, what's wrong? Look, stay there. I can see you with the Lens of Truth. I'll come to you."

The plan was going completely wrong. Mido turned and ran, remembering too late that he was in a tree house. He screamed - a real scream - as he fell off the platform and onto the grass below. Link heard him groan in pain. "My ankle!"

"Mido!" the hero cried worriedly. He leapt into action. Literally. He leapt off the platform, fired his gold Hookshot (the one from Termina) into the air, latched onto the tree above him and swung down in awesome heroic fashion. (I just had to rub it in.) "Are you okay?"

"I think I sprained my ankle." the injured boy moaned. The other Kokiri were coming out of their homes to investigate the noise.

"Is that Mido?"

"I think he's hurt!"

"Look! Link's with him!"

"In that case, he should be fine."

Mido looked around, horrified, as they crowded around him, looking at him sadly. Link placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay." he said kindly. "You'll be fine."

"Link, there's a ReDead in your house!" Mido cried desperately. Link just shook his head sadly.

"Mido, I think you were sleepwalking and had a nightmare."

"What? No! No, I was coming to save you from the… ReDead." he finished quietly, realising that nobody believed him.

"We'll take him to my place, Link." Saria said. "I've got bandages there."

"No." Mido moaned. "No, no, no! This is like a bad dream! You weren't supposed to be the hero this time, Mr. No-Fairy!" He exclaimed, both angry and sad. "I was! I… I…" He sighed. "Forget it."

He looked at Link with disgust, then at Saria with a sad look. The hero and the forest girl then carefully picked him up and carried him towards Saria's house.

Mido was so depressed the next day that he couldn't even summon the enthusiasm to skip the stones he was throwing across the water. He just thrust them into the pond and watched them sink.

"Hey."

The boss of the Kokiri turned to see Link walking towards him, his expression unreadable. He came and sat down next to Mido.

"What do you want, Link?"

"I was going to ask you that, actually."

"What do you mean?"

"After Saria and I fixed you up, I found your 'ReDead'. Care to explain?"

"Oh, what's it to you, you Hylian ratfink?" Mido spat, throwing a stone with such force that water splashed all over him. He growled in annoyance.

"Mido, what happened last night?" Link asked. "Were you trying to prank me?"

Mido ignored him and looked at the sky, watching a flock of birds fly overhead. He sighed.

"What's it like, Link?"

"Huh? What's what like?"

"To be respected. To be a hero. To be liked by the girls."

There was silence for a second, and then the Hero of Time burst out laughing.

"Is that what this is all about? You just want to woo a girl and you thought pranking me would get you there?"

"It's not funny!" Mido said angrily. "You get respect from everyone. All you need to do is swing a sword and wear a daring look on your face and everybody loves you. Everybody looks up to you. I hate that! I just… I just…" He sighed sadly. "I'm supposed to be the leader of the Kokiri, and yet, they all dislike me. Once, just once, I'd like them all to look at me the way they look at you - with awe."

He sighed again and got up.

"Why am I telling you this? It's not like you understand. Being a hero comes naturally for you. For others…" He shook his head and started to walk away. Link got up and hurried after him.

"Mido, being a hero is not a skill. It's not something you can learn. It's when you do the right thing for the right reason."

"Yeah, well, it doesn't matter either way. Saria doesn't like me and won't anytime soon. No one will. Not even me."

Link watched him storm away, looking concerned again.

**Later…**

"So, he was trying to scare you? Ugh, that Mido can be such a bum at times."

"It's not his prank that's the problem. It's why he did it." Link told Saria. "His self esteem is low. He's a leader and he just wants his people to look to him for leadership. He wants to prove himself."

"Well, there's nothing wrong with that." Saria said. "He can be a real jerk, but he means well. It's good to see that he's thinking of his reputation. The only question is, how does he plan to prove himself?"

"I don't know," Link answered, "But an opportunity won't just fall out of the sky. I think he needs to prove it to himself more than anything. I just wish that I could help him somehow. He…"

The hero trailed off, a grin starting to spread over his features.

"I've seen that look before." Saria said. "What're you thinking about?"

I'm thinking about two hundred rupees, a bottle of whipped cream and a damsel in distress!" Link declared, sounding mad.

Saria frowned. "Uh, what?"

"I'll explain later!" Link declared, hurrying off towards the exit of the forest. "I have to see someone about a favour!"

**That evening…**

_I still don't get why Fado wants me to deliver the Kokiri Sword to Link and Saria at the Sacred Forest Meadow. I don't see why Link couldn't just-_

"Yaaahhh! Mido!"

Mido gasped. "That's Saria's voice! She's in trouble! "I'M COMING, SARIA!" he roared, racing through the Lost Woods to the meadow. He scrambled through the corridors of the maze that bordered the Forest Temple and raced up the stone steps only to come to a dead halt, his mouth falling open at the scene before him.

Saria was tied to a stake in front of the Forest Temple entrance while Link lay on the ground, shuddering violently and frothing at the mouth. A Gerudo warrior stood over him, a blade in each hand.

"Mido, help!" pleaded Saria. "She poisoned Link and captured me! Please do something!"

Mido rasped the Kokiri Sword and charged forward. At the same time, the Gerudo warrior flexed her weapons with lightning fast movements. Mido skidded to a halt at this. He gulped. The warrior took a step forward and Mido yelped in fear and dived behind the nearby Gossip Stone.

"Oh." the Gerudo warrior said. "This is awkward. Do I still get paid if he chicken's out?"

Link groaned in disappointment, sitting up. "I'll see to it later, Nabooru." he mumbled, wiping the whipped cream off his mouth.

Mido peeked out, puzzled. "What's going on?"

"Well, Mido, I know how much you wanted to prove yourself, so we-" Link started. He was cut short at the sound of a thud and turned to see Nabooru fall to the ground. Standing over her was-

"Stalfos!" Link cried, reaching for his sword…

…only to remember that Mido had it.

Another Stalfos stepped up behind Link and clubbed him over the head, knocking him out. Saria called his name in horror. The two Stalfos looked at her, snickering.

"You're hero hasssss bit the dussssst, girl." one of them said.

"Yesssss. He's down for the count." the other rasped."

"Mido, run!" Saria called. Mido just stood there, frozen. The Stalfos ignored him and one stepped up beside Saria.

"I wonder how you tasssssste barbecued."

Saria let out a wail of despair.

"NOOOOO!"

Mido came rampaging out from behind the stone, fire blazing in his eyes. He grabbed Link's Deku Shield as he ran by and developed a fighting stance, sword in hand.

"Bring it."

The Stalfos looked at him and burst out laughing.

"How pathetic."

"Thissssssss won't take more than two seconds." one said, stepping forward, reaching out to grab Mido with its free skeletal hand. The Kokiri blocked its swipe and jabbed the sword into its kneecap. The monster screeched in pain and raised its club to attack. Mido dropped his gear and _caught_ it.

Saria gasped in awe. She couldn't believe her eyes.

The Stalfos was so surprised that Mido had no trouble jerking the club from it's grip and, despite the weapons heaviness, threw the thing behind him, his face a mask of determination. The Stalfos recovered from the shock and tried to grab him again, but the boy ducked, grabbed his sword and stabbed the skeleton right where its manhood should've been. The Stalfos let out an agonised groan and fell over sideways, clutching its lower body. The second Stalfos snarled in rage and leapt at Mido, a club in one hand and a metal shield in the other.

The duel that unfolded was unlike anything that anyone in the forest had ever seen. A few Kokiri who had been worried about Saria and Link had come to investigate and now watched from the top of the courtyard's walls in amazement. The Stalfos was at least twice Mido's height, but the Kokiri boss didn't give up. He blocked, dodged, jabbed, swished and clanged for what seemed like hours.

In truth, it was only about seven minutes or so.

The Stalfos eventually swung low, leaning down as it did so. Mido seized his chance and took off the skeleton's head in one clean swipe. It landed on the ground nearby and the headless body staggered around blindly. Mido stuck out his foot and tripped it, sending it sprawling onto the ground. He pinned it in place with a foot on its cheat and raised his sword. At that moment, Link came to his senses and stood up, watching intently.

"What are you waiting for, boy?" the Stalfos' head growled from the grass at Link's feet. "Finisssssh me off!"

_What would Link do in this situation?_

Mido already knew the answer; the right thing.

He thrust the Kokiri Sword not into the monster's chest, but into the ground and then removed his foot from the skeletal torso. He picked up the skull and handed it to the body, which was now sitting up.

"Go!" the Kokiri boss said. "You and your friend! If either of you ever attack any of my friends again, I will not be so merciful!"

The Stalfos looked at him intently for the longest time, then stood up, placed its head where it belonged and walked away. Its accomplice soon followed suit, walking in a rather stiff manner. When they were gone, the Kokiri all came racing into the clearing, cheering Mido's name. They were about to lift him over their heads and carry him back to the village with pride when Link stopped them.

"His work here is not quite done yet." the Hero of Time said. Mido nodded and walked over to untie Saria.

"Mido, I… I can't believe you risked your life like that." she said quietly.

"For you, I'd fight anyone or anything." he answered as he undid the last rope. As soon as she was free, Saria wrapped her arms around him and kissed him full on the mouth. A few cheekier Kokiri wolfos-whistled. (see what I did there?)

_Now I see what Link meant about doing the right thing for the right reason to be a hero… He's so right and… and… SARIA'S MOUTH TASTE LIKE STRAWBERRIES! AWESOME!_

**Bandicoot Sauce: And so ends the unlikely tale of an unlikely hero.**

**Link: But why Mido? Why not me?**

**Bandicoot Sauce: My story, my rules. I thought that someone should put Mido in the spotlight just for a change of pace. Anyone can write a **_Zelda_** fic where Link saves the day, but I-**

**Link's Fangirls: There he is! There's the jerk who made our hero look bad!**

**Uh-oh. This could get ugly. If I survive, like my story! In fact, like it anyway! And send me some requests for future **_Zelda_** stories! (I don't write lemons. Sorry.)**

**Thanks for reading!**


End file.
